Intro Power Inclusive Future For All FY23 Purpose Report | 51 Looking Ahead Economic empowerment Cisco and the Cisco Foundation’s investments aim to Building bridges in rural Africa create equitable access to opportunities and empower Cisco partners with Bridges to Prosperity, an organization focused individuals and families to be resilient and thrive. on building footbridges in rural areas of Africa to help alleviate We focus on three critical pillars of economic empowerment: skills to poverty and close the gap between regions experiencing uneven careers, entrepreneurship, and 昀椀nancial inclusion. economic growth. These seemingly simple structures play a crucial Our strategy is iterative and adaptive, designed to enable rapid role in economic empowerment by providing communities with response to emerging issues, needs, and opportunities within the access to education, healthcare, and markets that were previously sector, at both a global and regional level. Our investments focus on out of reach. Bridges to Prosperity also provides training to local underserved communities that face heightened challenges due to the laborers, builders, and engineers and helps develop local skills and capacity. Building on their proven, evidence-based model, lingering e昀昀ects of the pandemic, humanitarian crises, and climate- related natural disasters, as well as preexisting social and economic Cisco invested in their latest initiative—Fika Map—which leverages challenges. During this time of intense need, we’re doubling down the power of technology, machine learning, and data to equip on our guiding principles for this sector: Stability, Agency, Resilience, and enable government agencies, local communities, and other Independence, and Economic Security. stakeholders to identify transportation barriers and prioritize where to build bridges. Fika Map also addresses a critical data equity issue in low- to middle-income countries, empowering local communities CONNECTIVITY VIA to make data-informed decisions. FOOTBRIDGES CAN ENABLE: 36% increase in wages Learn more about our economic empowerment 75% and our social investment strategy. increase in farmer pro昀椀tability ESG Reporting Hub 60%+ women entering labor market